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NGOCSD General Membership Meeting: Friday, May 15th, 2015 ~ NGOCSD~ NGOCSD Members, Members, Colleagues Colleagues & Guests& Guests ~ ~ Nobel Laureate Professor Wangari Muta Maathai was born in , in 1940 and was the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree. obtained a degree in Biological Sciences from Mount St. Scholastica College in WeAtchison, invite Kansas you (1964). to attendShe subsequently our Januaryearned a Master General of Science Membership degree from the University Meeting of (1966). She pursued We idoctoralnvite studiesyou to in Germanyattend and our the UniversityJanuary of ,General obtaining Membership a Ph.D. (1971) from Meeting the where she also taught veterinary anatomy. Ms. Maathai was active in the National Council of Women of Kenya from 1976-87 and was its chairman from 1981-87. During thisTuesday, time, she introduced January the idea27th of planting2015 trees~ Time: with the 2 people-4PM in 1976 and continued to develop it into a broad- based, grassrootsTuesday, organization January whose main 27th focus is2015 the planting ~ Time: of trees 2with-4 PMwomen groups in order to conserve the environment and improve their quality of life. Through the she has assisted women in planting more than 20 million trees on their farms and on schools and2nd church Floor compounds. of the ProfessorUN Church Maathai Center was internationally recognized for her persistent struggle for democracy, human rights2nd and Floor environmental of the conservation. UN Church She addressed Center the UN on several occasions and spoke on behalf of women at 777 Plaza (located at E. 44th St. & First Ave.) special777 sessionsUnited of Nations the General PlazaAssembly (located for the five-year at E. review44th ofSt. the & earth First summit. Ave.) She and the Green Belt Movement received numerous awards, most notably the 2004 . Others include The Sophie Prize (2004), The Prize for Environment (2004), The Conservation Scientist Award (2004), J. Sterling Morton Award (2004), WANGO Environment Award (2003), Outstanding Vision and Commitment Award (2002), Excellence Award from the Kenyan Community Abroad (2001), Golden Ark Award (1994), Juliet Hollister Award (2001), Jane Adams Leadership Award (1993), Edinburgh Medal (1993), 's Africa Prize for Leadership (1991), Goldman Environmental 2 PMPrize (1991), the Woman of the World (1989), Windstar Award for the Environment (1988), Better World Society Award (1986), (1984)2 PMand the Woman of the Year Award (1983). Professor Maathai was also listed on UNEP's Global 500 Hall of Fame and namedWelcome one of the by 100 Co heroines-Chairs: of the world. Ms. In Margo June 1997, LaZaro she was elected & byMs. Earth Yvonne Times as one O’Neal of 100 persons in the world who have made a difference in the environmental arena. Professor Maathai also received honorary doctoral degrees fromYvonne several institutions O’Neal around the world: William's College, MA, USA (1990), HobartWelcome & William Smithby Co Colleges-Chairs: (1994),& NGOCSD UniversityMs. Margo of ExecutiveNorway LaZaro (1997) Committeeand & Yale Ms. University (2004). Professor Maathai served on the boards of several organizations including the UN Secretary& General's NGOCSD Advisory Executive Board on Disarmament, Committee The Jane Goodall Institute, Women and Environment Development Organization (WEDO), World Learning for International Development, Green Cross International, Environment Liaison Center International, the World WIDE Network of Women in Environmental Work and National Council of Women of Kenya.2:15 In -December2:45PM 2002, Professor Maathai was elected to parliament with an overwhelming 98% of the vote and was subsequently appointed by the president as Assistant2:15-2:45 MinisterPM for Environment, Natural Resources and Wildlife in Kenya's ninth parliament. Professor Maathai left us in September of 2011 and we miss her dearly. ~ The Importance of Empowering Youth to Become Entrepreneurs ~ ~ The ImportanceMr. Arthur Amaya of Andambi, Empowering Minister Counsellor Youth of the toPermanent Become Mission Entrepreneurs Kenya to the United Nations ~ . In October 2014, Mr. Andambi was posted to the Kenya Mission to the UN in New York as Minister Counsellor where he is in charge of Second Committee matters and performs AdministrativeMs. duties Jennifer as Head of Chancery.Kushell Mr. Andambi was recruited by the Public Service Commission of Kenya in February 1990 as an Assistant Secretary. He worked mainly at the Ministry of Home Affairs where he performed duties of a CEO of SpecialYoung Programme & Successful for Refugees.Ms. Media He Jenniferworked and with the FounderKushell United Nations of YourHigh Commissioner Success forNow Refugees (YSN.com to ensure refugees) were given CEO of Youngthe status & Successfulthey deserved in Kenya.Media He was and also Founder involved in the of establishment Your Succes of refugees camps Now in the(YSN.com country and generally) worked with other aid agencies which were involved in the care and protection of refugees and forced migrants. Mr. Andambi worked briefly at the then Standing Committee on Human Rights in 2:45Kenya -4 wherePM the rights of Kenyans particularly those in prisons were protected. He also worked briefly at the Ministry of Public Works2:45- and4PM the Ministry of Lands during this period where he served as a Personal Assistant to the then Permanent Secretary. Mr. Andambi has a Master’s Degree in International Studies from the University of Nairobi. Graduated in September 2008 ~and The had graduated Emerging in 1989 withFrontiers a Bachelor’s inDegree Agriculture (First Class Honors) ~ in Sociology and Political Science from MS University of Baroda in Gujarat State, India.~ The Mr. as deployedEmerging to the Ministry Frontiers of Foreign Affairsin Agriculture and posted to the Africa ~ and AU Directorate where he dealt with matters. In October 2008, he was posted to the Kenya Embassy in , Sweden where he dealt with relations between Kenya and Sweden, Norway and Iceland. He worked as Deputy Head of Mission and Head of Chancery where he was in charge of the general administration of the Mission. In November 2012, he returned to Nairobi where he was reassigned duties as Deputy DirectorMr. Jorgeat the Africa Laguna and AU Directroate.-Celis His work there involved promoting relations between Kenya and other African countries including the African Union. Was later transferred to Europe and Commonwealth Directorate in the same capacity and his work involved promoting relationsSenior between Programme Kenya and European Management countriesMr. including Jorge Officerthe Commonwealth. Laguna on Intergovernmental- Celis Policy Co-ordination Senior ProgrammeUnited Management Nations Environment Officer on IntergovernmentalProgramme-NY Office Policy (UNEP) Co-ordination Ms. Lopa Banerjee, Chief of the Civil Society Section at UN Women, a position she has held since January 2012. She is based in New UnitedYork and Nations leads UNWomen’s Environment work on strengthening Programme civil society-NY contribution, Office participation(UNEP) and influence in norm setting and intergovernmental policy discussionMs. andZubaida decision processes. Rasul A-Ronning gender and human rights thematic expert with substantive experience in social policy and governance issues across Asia and Africa, she has worked for over 3 decades in international development, policy Co-Founderadvocacy, communication and ViceMs. and President partnershipZubaida building Business Rasul across-Ronning theDevelopment/Strategic UN and in the private sector. She Operations has had a long career with the United Nations. Prior to the UN she workedGreenGrow with the private Venturessector as well as Inc. with civil society, in India. Before joining UN Women, she worked Co-Founderwith UNDP and and Vice OHCHR President in South Africa Business and UNICEF Development/Strategic in Iran (the Islamic Republic of), Bangladesh Operations and New York. In India, she worked for several years in communication,GreenGrow research and Ventures advocacy. She Inc. has worked with civil society in diverse spaces and facilitated UN-civil society engagement in South Africa,Mr. Iran Gordonand Bangladesh. M. Her Tapper areas of specialization include policy analysis and advocacy, partnership development and engagement, and Gender and Human Rights Based Programming and training. She speaks English, Hindi, Bengali and is learningFounder Spanish. and ChairMr. Gordonman of M.Give Tapper Them a Hand Foundation Founder and Chairman of Give Them a Hand Foundation Ms. Wanjira Mathai, Director, wPOWER,Mr. ChairBen ofFlanner the Green Belt Movement and Project Director for the Wangari Maathai CEO/Co-FounderInstitute and for Peace Head & Environmental Farmer of Studies. the Brooklyn Prior to this she Grange directed International Rooftop Affairs Farm, at the New Green York Belt Movement City (GBM), where she managed International outreachMr. Ben and resource Flanner mobilization. For 6 years prior to joining GBM, Ms. Mathai worked as Senior CEO/Co-FounderProgram and OfficerHead at theFarmer Carter Presidential of the Center, Brooklyn Atlanta, Georgia Grange (USA), R monitoringooftop & Farm, evaluating New disease York eradication C ityprograms. Since 2002, Ms. Mathai directed International Affairs at GBM, which was founded by her mother, the late Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai. Today Wanjira directs the new Partnership for Women’s Entrepreneurship in Renewables (wPower) Hub at the Wangari Maathai Institute. Wanjira is theThe Chair Co of the-Chairs Green Belt will Movement moderate and sits on the the Board Q & of AWMI. She is also a World Future Councilor, Advisory Council Member (Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves), is a member of the Global Restoration Council and is a member of the Earth

Charter InternationalThe Council.Co-Chairs Wanjira iswill Kenyan moderate and a graduate the of Q Hobart & A & William Smith Colleges (USA). She earned graduate degrees in Public Health and Business from Emory~~~ University’s Rollins School of Public Health and Goizueta School of Business (USA). ~~~ NGOCSD General Membership Meeting: Friday, May 15th, 2015 (continued)

Dr. Margaret (Peg) Snyder, Founding Director of UNIFEM (1978-89), Co-Founder of the African Centre for Women and Head of the Voluntary Agencies Bureau of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA 1971-78). She was an international election observor in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Tanzania and a Fulbright scholar at Makerere University, Uganda (1990s); her PhD is from the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. She is Co-Founder and Vice President emeritus of the Board of the Sirleaf Market Women's Fund and Treasurer emeritus of the Green Belt Movement International. Her recent books are Transforming Development: Women, Poverty and Politic (a history of UNIFEM), African Women and Development: A History (co-authored with Mary Tadesse), Women in African Economies: from Burning Sun to Boardroom and Above the Odds: a Decade of Change for Ugandan Women Entrepreneurs (with Sarah Kitakule); she has written chapters in several other books.

Ms. Mia MacDonald, Chair of the Green Belt Movement International – North America and Founder and Executive Director of Brighter Green. Based in New York. Ms. MacDonald is a public policy analyst and writer who has worked as a consultant to a range of international non-governmental organizations; including the Ford Foundation, the World Wildlife Fund, the Green Belt Movement, the Sierra Club, and Save the Children as well as several United Nations agencies, among others—on issues of environment, gender, sustainable development, women’s rights and gender equality, reproductive health and population, and conservation and animal protection. She has published many articles in popular and environmental media, authored a number of policy papers and reports, and has contributed to four books, including Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai’s best-selling autobiography, Unbowed. She is a Senior Fellow of the Worldwatch Institute and has taught in the human rights program at ’s School of International and Public Affairs and the environmental studies program at New York University. She has served on the board of Farm Sanctuary and Food Empowerment Project. She currently chairs the board of the Green Belt Movement International – North America. She received a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a B.A. with honors from Columbia University.

Mr. Ochoro E. Otunnu, J.D. is a Board Member of the Green Belt Movement International, US. He serves as Principal and General Counsel of LCN Capital LLC. Mr. Otunnu has extensive legal and private equity experience in fund formation, deal structuring, financing, corporate governance and securities law within developed and emerging markets. His complex transaction and negotiation work includes assisting in the development of the Angola Stock Exchange. Mr. Otunnu combines his deep commercial expertise with a lifelong passion and commitment to human rights and social and economic development. His pro legal work includes the 2004 constitutional case that ended one-party rule in Uganda, the defence of Koigi Wamwere who was emprisoned twice in Kenya for his opposition to the regimes of Jomo Kenyatta and as well as acting as counsel to American journalist Taylor Krauss, who was detained in Uganda for covering pro-democracy demonstrations. Throughout his career, Mr. Otunnu has been extensively involved in development work. He formed and became Executive Director of Africa AIDS Initiative (AAI). Mr. Otunnu also served as Program Coordinator with Oxfam, with responsibility for humanitarian work in five countries, consulted for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and supported the team that brokered a peace deal in Kenya following post-election violence in 2008. He also advised Rory Kennedy in the production of the HBO award-winning documentary film Pandemic: Facing AIDS. Mr. Otunnu serves as a Member of Advisory Board of Impact Investment Partners LLP. In 1989 he co-chaired the United Nations mission that developed the blueprint for the UN international assistance to the non- governmental sector in Namibia, and created the group at Yale Law School that partnered with the Pan-African Parliamentarians to draft model HIV/AIDS legislation for Africa. Mr. Otunnu holds a J.D. degree from Columbia Law School; an M.A. in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) from Oxford University; and an A.B. in Government from Dartmouth College.

Ms. Eleanor Blomstrom, Program Director/ Head of Office, Women Environment & Development Organization. As Program Director at WEDO, Ms. Blomstrom manages internal and external relationships and partnerships, including with staff, funders and coalition and project partners. She works closely with program staff in strategic development, implementation and monitoring of WEDO programs and projects. With a particular focus on sustainable development, climate change and urbanization, her work incorporates research, capacity building, and global-level advocacy at multiple UN fora, including the UNFCCC and related to the post-2015 development agenda. Supporting WEDO’s long-standing role of facilitating space for women’s organizing and action, she represents WEDO as organizing partner of the Women’s Major Groups for Sustainable Development and for Disaster Risk Reduction. Prior to WEDO, she worked on climate change projects ranging from green roofs to waste management to adaptation, and on community development projects in the areas of agriculture and women’s empowerment in Nicaragua and Nigeria. Her current work is informed by a professional background in bilingual elementary education with a focus on race and gender equity in public schools. Ms Blomstrom holds a Masters in International Affairs in Urban and Environmental Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a Bachelors degree in Environmental Sciences.

Ms. Rita Henley Jensen, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women's eNews which is a daily, online news service covering issues of particular concern to women and girls. Launched in 2000, Women’s eNews has won 40 journalism awards including the PASS Award from the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and the Rosa Cisneros award from the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Western Hemisphere Region. Jensen also was named by the New York Daily News one of the 100 most influential women in New York and she has just been named one of Folio magazine’s Top Women in Media, Corporate Visionary, to be celebrated in June. She is a former senior writer for the National Law Journal and columnist for The New York Times Syndicate and has received an armload of awards, including the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Alumni award. Jensen is also a survivor of domestic violence and a former welfare mother who earned degrees from Ohio State University and Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. She is the grandmother of four, two granddaughters and two grandsons. “Covering women's issues; changing women's lives” www.womensenews.org

Mr. Ilmi Granoff, J.D. is a Senior Research Fellow at Overseas Development Institute. ODI is leading the institute’s work on green growth. He is an attorney with over 15 years of experience and expertise in environmental law and policy, sustainable development, energy and infrastructure finance and public-private partnerships. He recently served as the sole environmental and climate counsel at the African Development Bank, where he advised the bank’s management, and was responsible for all legal issues related to climate, environmental and social matters for the bank’s portfolio throughout Africa. He also advised the Bank on various issues related to its multilateral climate funds, including the structuring of the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa. He continues to advise the bank’s Climate & Environment Department on integration of green growth principles in the bank’s strategy, operations, and policy support to member countries. Prior to this, he served for five years as an associate in the energy and infrastructure finance practice of the international law firm of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, providing commercially practical legal advice to governments, banks, companies and multilaterals. Ilmi’s practice focused on clean energy transactions and public private partnerships. Mr. Granoff has researched and published on sustainable development, international law, and conservation, particularly in Latin America. He holds graduate degrees in environmental science and international relations from , and received his juris doctor from New York University School of Law. He holds a bachelor’s degree (High Honors) from Swarthmore College. NGOCSD General Membership Meeting: Friday, May 15th, 2015 (continued)

Mr. Ravi Karkara, Co-Chair, World We Want 2015 Policy and Strategy Group; Global Advisor on Youth + Partnership with United Nations Millennium Campaign and UN-HABITAT, based in New York. He is the lead author of the groundbreaking report “Youth 21: Building the Architecture of Youth Engagement in the UN System,” by UN-Habitat, which contributed to the creation of United Nations Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth. Ravi represented UN-HABITAT as the Co-chair of the UN Interagency Network on Youth Development. Government of Sri Lanka appointed him as the Global Advisor to the World Conference on Youth in 2014, focusing on youth perspective in developing post-2015 development agenda. He has relentlessly supported United Nations SG’s My World 2015 survey in reaching close to 5.5 million young people. Ravi has been co-chairing the Policy Strategy Group for World We Want 2015 - a UN and CSO co-led post-2015 Big Data-Curation-Visualization global conversation platform. He is serving as Strategic Adviser Partnership Beijing+20, Office of the Assistant Secretary-General/Deputy Executive Director, UN-Women. He has committed his lifetime to women’s and girls’ empowerment, strengthening human rights of/with girls, adolescent girls, young women and women, gender equality and social inclusion. He is a founding member of the MenEngage Alliance and Young Men 4 Gender Equality. He has worked with several organizations on gender mainstreaming with a specific focus on children, youth and women including UN-Women, UNICEF and Save the Children. He has been advocating role of boys and men in gender equality from a life-cycle approach. The Ministers Reference Book Commonwealth 2014 featured his article on Youth Led Development The book features over 40 articles from leading commentators, including H.E.s David Cameron, Goodluck Jonathan, Executive Heads of UNCTAD, ITC, IMF, UNESCO, FAO and others.

Ms. Emilie McGlone, is the Director of the New York-based office of Peace Boat US, a non-profit organization working to promote peace, sustainable development and respect for the environment through educational programs organized onboard the Peace Boat, a chartered passenger ship that travels the world on peace voyages. Peace Boat holds Special Consultative Status with the Social and Economic Council of the United Nations and works in partnership with UN delegates, Nobel Peace Laureates and community leaders from around the world to create opportunities for international cooperation focused on conflict resolution, environmental sustainability, indigenous issues, cultural awareness and peace education. Founded in 1983 and nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, Peace Boat has sailed on over 83 global voyages, carrying more than 50,000 people to more than 100 countries. Currently, Peace Boat is launching a new initiative to build an ECO SHIP, which will showcase green technology and design, while inspiring positive change to radically reduce our carbon footprint. For information about Peace Boat, please visit www.peaceboat.org.

Ms. Julie Ojiambo, Student at Hunter College. She is a graduating senior at Hunter College. Originally from Kenya, she is interested in human rights, women's rights and children's rights and is planning a career as an international lawyer. Ms. Ojiambo knew Wangari Maathai through her childhood and was inspired by her leadership and dedication to being of service to all people for a better world.

The Rev. Canon Petero A. Sabune, Chaplain, Ministerial, Family, and Volunteer Services, As the Global Partnership Officer for the Episcopal Church. During his tenure as Global South Grants Officer for Trinity Church, Wall Street, Rev. Sabune experienced firsthand the effects of climate change in the rain forest of Cameroon and in Congo, which Dr. Maathai called the world’s second lung. Rev. Sabune was raised in the Volcanic Region between Uganda, Congo and Rwanda; The Muhavura Ranges of Central and , drinking from the same fresh water streams, that Professor Wangari Muta Maathai writes about in one of her books on the environment, Challenge For Africa. He also has experienced the same soil erosion, deforestation and the contamination of the drinking water in his ancestral village of Kagando and has led Forgiveness and Reconciliation and Tree Planting, missions to Uganda, Rwanda and Haiti. Rev. Sabune has travelled extensively in East, Central, West and Southern Africa. A Student of African history, he has been to 38 countries in Africa. He is founder and President of Forgiveness and Reconciliation Project. Sabune has had articles published in O Magazine and the Huffington Post, on the Prayer and on Forgiveness. He was also featured in a PBS special by Helen Whitney; Forgiveness: A Time To love & A Time To Hate. A graduate of Vassar College with a BA in Political Science and English, he holds a Masters in Divinity from Union Theological Seminary, in the City of New York and has done graduate work at Yeshiva, Seton Hall and Rutgers Universities on the Holocaust, Genocide, Trauma and family Systems. He has been married to Dr. Maureen Fonseca for 36 years and they are proud to be the parents of Haba, Rini, Bing and Nzaba and guardians of Kami and Richard; a niece and a nephew and are happy owners of two dogs; Kitwo and Joline. They reside in Dobbs Ferry, New York.

Ms. Vivian Adhiambo Onano Youth Advisor to the UN Women Global Civil Society Advisory Group, Women Deliver Young Leader and a Global Youth Advocate for the Mara Mentor Program. Ms. Onano is a women and girls’ advocate and youth leader who was born and raised in rural Kenya. Her arduous upbringing has forged her strong commitment to education, to women, and to leadership. Ms. Onano has a deep interest in re-defining Africa's growth and development. A Moremi fellow, she is recognized as one the top 25 emerging women leaders with the courage to lead change on the African continent. Vivian recently graduated Carthage College and currently works with the African Leadership Academy as an External Relations Fellow. She has held various leadership positions, including serving as a Congressional District Leader for ONE Campaign in Wisconsin, a campus advocate for the United Nations Association-USA, and a Half the Sky Movement community ambassador. She is also the Education Spokesperson for Moremi Africa, a Global Youth Ambassador for A World At School, and a 2014 Change Maker Fellow with the Nantucket Project. Vivian has a diverse background working with a variety of organizations, including the MasterCard Foundation, where she served as an external reviewer for their scholarship program in Sub-Saharan Africa. As a blogger for Huffington Post, she uses her oral and written communication skills in service of her passion –– providing holistic and innovative approaches to solving community problems. Vivian actively advocates for women and girls' issues and youth entrepreneurship in Africa. Vivian is a respected speaker who often speaks on global education, finding one's passion and purpose, gender equality, youth entrepreneurship/empowerment, and international development. She has presented at the United Nations, Nexus Global Youth Summit, and the Clinton Global Initiative, among others. She also served as a United Nations Youth Representative and was profiled as one of the 70 outstanding leaders of United Nations Association -USA. Intel featured Vivian as a Girl Rising hero. Vivian has a vision and dream to help create an inclusive world for everyone. She can be reached via Twitter (@vivianonano).

Professor Wangari Muta Maathai’s qutoes read by: Mr. Modou Cham, Administrator of WIT; Mr. Juan Chebly, World We Want 2015 Coordinator; Ms. Catherine Williams, Global Youth Advocate; Mr. Austin Schancio, World We Want; Ms. Elisabeth Muratori, WIT; Mr. Parth Shingala, WIT; Ms. Jillian Abballe, Program Associate General Board of Church & Society of The United Methodist Church; Ms. Lauren Berger, GBMUS; Ms. Lindsay Jean Ashby, International Council of Women; Dra. Luz Maria Utrera, President & Founder Fundacion Luz Maria; Mr. Ian O'Connor, Unitarian Universialist- UN Office

Our Sincere Appreciation goes to the Permanent Mission of Kenya to the United Nations, Ms. Wanjira Mathai; Dr. Peg Snyder; Ms. Mia MacDonald; Mr. Martin Rowe; Ms. Seemin Qayum, UN Women; Ms. Lisa Merton, Marlboro Productions; Mr. Jonathan Granoff, Ms. Lindsay Ashby & Mr. Peter Ross.